10

Description of the
Example Facility and Process
The HEP Worked Examples illustrates how hazard evaluation (HE) techniques can
be used throughout the life of a realistic chemical process. The HEP Worked
Examples simulates the evolution of a process from its inception through design,
construction, start-up, and routine operation. It also shows a portion of this process
reaching the end of its useful commercial life and being decommissioned after more
than 30 years of operation. This chapter gives the reader general information about
this hypothetical facility.
A vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) manufacturing process was chosen as the
example process for several reasons. First, it is a common commercial process used
by a number of chemical companies. Second, it possesses several inherent hazardous
attributes that HE techniques would customarily be used to address. For example,
the materials used in the process are toxic, flammable, and potentially reactive.
Finally, the example process contains both continuous and batch operations. All of
these features combine to make the VCM process well suited for challenging the
creative hazard evaluation abilities of prospective practitioners.
Althougfi meant to be as realistic as possible, threader is caution^
at face value the physical and chemical property data, process design information, and
plant operating characteristics used in the HEP Worked Examples. Some "safety
problems? were intentionally designed into the facility and Ae VCM process so the
abilities of the various HE techniques to discover pn^^sss^ety problems be m^
efficiently demonstrated. Moreover, the company, facility, and process described in these
examples are purely fictional, and any resemblance to actual companies, facilities, or
commercial process designs is purely coincidental Each person using the Worked
Examples remains sokfy and exclusively responsible for the use of this information and
any conclusions *^
operating philosophies.
The following sections give the general background of the hypothetical chemical
company and facility, provide a brief overview of the VCM manufacturing process,
and describe the operating lifetime of both the example facility and the process.
10.1 Company and Facility Background
ABC Chemicals, Inc. is a large U.S. corporation that produces a variety of
commodity chemicals such as chlorine, caustic, sulfuric acid, and hydrochloric acid.
ABC enjoys an excellent safety record earned over 50 years, and many of ABC's

technical personnel are internationally recognized as experts in the manufacturing

and handling of its chemical products. For a number of reasons, ABC has decided
to expand into the VCM market. ABC wants to build a state-of-the-art, world-scale
VCM manufacturing plant at their Anywhere, U.S.A. facility. A business team has
been assembled to manage this three-year venture project. As a part of their recently
formalized company policy on process safety management, ABC will perform hazard
evaluation studies at appropriate times throughout the development and operation
of the plant.

103. Process Overview

The ABC business team performed an extensive literature review and patent
search concerning VCM manufacturing technology. They have tentatively decided
to use a VCM production process involving vapor phase dehydrochlorination of
ethylene dichloride (EDC) at elevated temperatures. The intermediate EDC is
produced through catalytic direct chlorination of ethylene. Later in the life of the
facility, ABC decides to expand the plant to include polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
production. Ikble 10.1 lists the primary feed, intermediate, and product materials
for this process, along with an indication of their hazardous characteristics.
ABC has no experience with manufacturing VCM and limited experience with
some of the process materials. Thus, they are justifiably cautious in proceeding with
this venture project and plan to use state-of-the-art control and safety system
technology in the VCM process. Figure 10.1 is a diagram of the proposed VCM
manufacturing process. In the HEP Worked Examples, only portions of the process
are used to demonstrate HE techniques. Process safety information, drawings, and
data are provided as needed to support the examples in the individual chapters.

103 Description of the Process Lifetime

The best process safety management programs are ones in which process safety
activities are performed throughout the life of a process. Managers and hazard
analysts face the challenge of finding creative ways to perform the necessary hazard
Ikble 10.1 Primary VCM Process Chemicals and Hazards
Material

Hazards

Chlorine

Tbxicity, reactivity

Ethylene

Flammability, reactivity

Ethylene dichloride

Flammability, toxicity

Hydrogen chloride

Tbxicity, reactivity

Vinyl chloride monomer

Flammability, toxicity, reactivity

INCINERATOR
ETHYLENE
RECYCLE

ETHYLENE
CHLORINATION
REACTOR

EDC

ETHYLENE
DICHLORIDE
STORAGE

EDC
CRACKING

VCM
CLEAN-UP

VCM

CHLORINE

FUEL
GAS
EDC PRODUCTION
C2H4 + CI2

CATALYS

V C^CU + HEAT

HCI AND
BY-PRODUCTS

VCM PRODUCTION
C2H4CI2 + HEAT ^ C2H3CI + HCI

Figure 10.1 Schematic of the example VCM manufacturing process.

PVC BATCH
REACTOR

evaluations in an efficient and high-quality manner. Fortunately, the hazard

evaluation techniques discussed in the HEP Guidelines can be used in many of the
PSM activities that take place throughout the lifetime of a facility.
The specific challenges that hazard analysts face in performing HE studies
depend upon the circumstances governing the study. One important factor that
influences the execution of HE studies is the life-cycle phase a process is in when an
Tkble 10.2 Summary of Lifetime Phases for the Example VCM Process
Lifetime Phase

Time Point

Purpoee/Motivatioo for the Study

Year-3

Check safety feasibility. Support

preliminary process and material
selection

Year -2.5

Provide input to site selection and

preliminary process layout

Pilot Plant Operation

Year -2

Satisfy potential safety concerns

involving pilot plant operation.
Provide input to initial safety
systems design for the world-scale
process

Detailed Engineering

Year -1.5

Construction/Start-Up

YearO

Research and Development

Conceptual Design

Finalize safe design before

procuring equipment
Verify process was constructed
according to design intent and all
previous HE study action items
have been resolved

Routine Operation

Year +2

Perform periodic hazard review

required by company PSM
program. Evaluate the potential
safety impacts of a series of process
changes that have occurred since
start-up (other periodic reviews are
performed on the plant during its
life, but are not listed in this table)

Plant Expansion

Year +5

Evaluate the safety aspects of a

proposed installation of a potyvinyl
chloride (PVC) batch reactor
system

Incident Investigation

Year +20

Determine the probable causes of

a major accidental release of toxic
material

Decommissioning

Year +30

Identify any safety problems

dealing with the dismantling of one
VCM cracking furnace and the use
of its tube bundle at another
facility

HE study is needed. A primary objective of the HEP Worked Examples is to

illustrate how various HE techniques can be used to perform hazard evaluations at
any stage of a process lifetime.
The Worked Examples presents a fictional history of ABC Chemicals, Inc.; its
Anywhere, U.S.A facility; and its VCM manufacturing process. Nine specific points
in the life of the VCM process have been chosen as the times where the company's
management thought a hazard evaluation study should be performed. While the
primary purposes of these HE studies are to determine design or operating
weaknesses and to find ways to improve the safety of the process, the motivation and
focus of individual studies are different for each stage in its life.
Tkble 10.2 lists the nine lifetime stages used in the HEP Worked Examples.
Some of these are customary phases in the development and operation of any
industrial facility (e.g., conceptual design, detailed engineering, start-up). Others are
unique event points that create a need for performing an HE study (e.g., plant
expansion, incident investigation, and decommissioning). Also listed are the relative
time points (start-up occurs at year 0) when these studies occur, as well as their
purposes/motivations.
In reality, a specific company might not perform formal HE studies at all of
these points. In fact, organizations may have fewer or more specific phases leading
to the construction and start-up of a new process. Thus, the example lifetime phases
and HE studies should not be viewed as a standard for dictating when HE studies
must be done. In any case, companies will likely need to perform many periodic
reviews of the hazards of their chemical processes during the operating life of a
facility. These recurrent reviews are an important component of a facility's PSM
program and they provide necessary insights to organizations managing the risk of
their chemical operations.
The following chapter outlines the hazards associated with the VCM process.
Subsequent chapters illustrate the use of the HE techniques covered in the HEP
Guidelines.